[?] You Can

[?]II Need a Toad-Proof Fence

[?]Ke Fiji Honey

Who know s — someday, Fiji gipanni Honey may he giving Zealand’s famous clover-honey n for its money on the UK et. At present, it is a very in ual industry in Fiji—introduced short-term resident hut carried ow hy a well-known Kai Viti, some interesting results and le face of some quite extra ary hazards.

SHE’S nothing new about bee eeping in the Islands. PIM ran valuable series of articles on übject back in the 1930’s and Dnaries and others in many s have kept a few hives, could well be, however, that is the only place where local / is on sale in labelled jars in ig stores—and very tasty honey of it is. iar of this product wearing a t label with the words PURE

Honey From The Isles

IJI, and another small sticker the words Na Bure Vuda Farm lets, Box 146, Lautoka, was sampled in Suva, er the small sticker came off real under it: PRODUCED BY

Han Davis, Lautoka. It

•evealed a story, ittle inquiry on the north-west of Viti Levu soon uncovered ict that Mrs. Ivy Waddingham, of Mr. A. E. Waddingham, ger of the Lautoka Branch of > Philp (SS) Co. Ltd., was the • of this apiary. iut 18 months ago Norman , an Australian, had set up business —without any great edge of beekeeping, mother location he had estab the hives, and fed the bees i sugar, so that what they manufacturing was a poor of honey, rather approaching i syrup. , for some reason, Davis soon lis immigration permit with i and was packed off, Mrs. ingham bought him out as he sed his farewells to Fiji. That ast July.

Dney from Wild Flowers :e she acquired the apiary a progress has been made in ving the quality of the honey, lessor Erkert, of California, a authority on tropical bee ig, well known in Australia, onsulted. feeding of sugar was halted le bees now gather the nectar wild flowers. The honey so 3ed is light amber in colour, ith none of the slightly sharp r associated with some of the

darker Australian honeys.

Unfortunately, the feeding of sugar polluted the comb to an ex tent and it will be some time be fore this is completely worked out Mrs. Waddingham at present has 67 hives. The honey brings 2/4 per lb and retails in the stores at 3/6, in glass jars.

This price is high on New Zealand standards—where the finest clover honey in cardboard cartons retails at about 2/-, but is comparable with the selling price of Australian honey in Fiji, Most of Fi j i’s honey-eaters apparently are Australians who pre fer the darker, liquid Australian honey with its sharper flavour gained from the bees feeding on the flowers of the native Box trees, other wild

flowers and tree blossoms.

Following the establishment of this apiary by Davis, two other overseas men, Messrs. Nemo and Bernard, established another one— at present of about 39 hives—at Nadarivatu, in the north, 2,700 ft above sea level and operating under the name of Fiji Apiaries Co. They are reported to be striking technical problems up there.

One of the problems of bee-keep ing in Fiji is the toad, which swarms everywhere. Toads eat bees and park themselves at the hive entrances to cause great losses, so it is neces sary to have the hives enclosed in toad-proof fences.

Fiji’s present consumption of im ported honey is about 6i tons per annum.